Summary of No Stopping Us Now

Gail Collins

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Rating

The rating – what does it mean?

At getAbstract, we summarize books* that help people understand the world and make it better. Whatever we select for our library has to excel in one or the other of these two core criteria:

Enlightening – You’ll learn things that will inform and improve your decisions.

Helpful – You’ll take-away practical advice that will help you get better at what you do.

We rate each piece of content on a scale of 1–10 with regard to these two core criteria. Our rating helps you sort the titles on your reading list from solid (5) to brilliant (10). Books we rate below 5 won’t be summarized. Here's what the ratings mean:

10 – Brilliant. A helpful and/or enlightening book that, in addition to meeting the highest standards in all pertinent aspects, stands out even among the best. Often an instant classic and must-read for everyone.
9 – Superb. A helpful and/or enlightening book that is extremely well rounded, has many strengths and no shortcomings worth mentioning.
8 – Very good. A helpful and/or enlightening book that has a substantial number of outstanding qualities without excelling across the board, e.g. presents the latest findings in a topical field and is written by a renowned expert but lacks a bit in style.
7 – Good. A helpful and/or enlightening book that combines two or more noteworthy strengths, e.g. contains uncommonly novel ideas and presents them in an engaging manner.
6 – Notable. A helpful and/or enlightening book that stands out by at least one aspect, e.g. is particularly well structured.
5 – Solid. A helpful and/or enlightening book, in spite of its obvious shortcomings. For instance, it may offer decent advice in some areas while being repetitive or unremarkable in others.

While the rating tells you how good a book is according to our two core criteria, it says nothing about its particular defining features. Therefore, we use a set of 20 qualities to characterize each book by its strengths:

Applicable – You’ll get advice that can be directly applied in the workplace or in everyday situations.
Analytical – You’ll understand the inner workings of the subject matter.
Background – You’ll get contextual knowledge as a frame for informed action or analysis.
Bold – You’ll find arguments that may break with predominant views.
Comprehensive – You’ll find every aspect of the subject matter covered.
Concrete Examples – You’ll get practical advice illustrated with examples of real-world applications or anecdotes.
Controversial – You’ll be confronted with strongly debated opinions.
Eloquent – You’ll enjoy a masterfully written or presented text.
Engaging – You’ll read or watch this all the way through the end.
Eye opening – You’ll be offered highly surprising insights.
For beginners – You’ll find this to be a good primer if you’re a learner with little or no prior experience/knowledge.
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Inspiring – You’ll want to put into practice what you’ve read immediately.
Overview – You’ll get a broad treatment of the subject matter, mentioning all its major aspects.
Scientific – You’ll get facts and figures grounded in scientific research.
Visionary – You’ll get a glimpse of the future and what it might mean for you.
Well structured – You’ll find this to be particularly well organized to support its reception or application.

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Qualities

Comprehensive
Well Structured
Overview

Recommendation

New York Times columnist Gail Collins starts with the colonial period and concludes in the present, presenting an array of anecdotes about women, aging and events across time. Her methodical research unearths surprising facts about women’s expectations for their lives and livelihood prior to the 2oth century. Collins is an accomplished cultural historian, and her focus on women and aging provides a lens for better understanding how US society perceives women and their roles, and how that has and hasn’t changed, at work and beyond.

About the Author

New York Times journalist Gail Collins is the first women to serve as the Times’s editorial page editor (2001-2007). The author of seven books, Collins has received numerous awards, including the George Polk Award for commentary.

Summary

In colonial times, longevity was seen as a gift from God.

In the 1800s, pervasive illnesses made old age a sign of good fortune, a mark of God’s grace. While some churches sat older congregants near the pulpit, some ministers also encouraged aging women to contemplate death and sit unobtrusively in a corner at home, unless their family needed them to do chores. In farming communities, older women wore tight caps indicating they were no longer on the market for marriage.

If a husband died without a will, his widow had the right to one-third of his property until she died. In the 18th century, widows outnumbered widowers by a factor of seven. Though remarriage was popular, some women preferred the independence of widowhood, which allowed them to run businesses and manage their own money.

Books and magazines promoted a vision of women’s lives.

The 19th century provided women with books and magazines that taught social graces and set societal expectations. They expounded middle-class values focusing on a woman’s role as wife, mother and moral beacon. A woman’s place...

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